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Junior Year
If you are interested in attending college and playing athletics, it is extremely important to begin the process no later than the beginning of your junior year in high school. There are a number of elements in the process, from achieving academic and athletic success to beginning to understand the elements of choosing the setting that is right for you. The series of articles in this section is to provide some guidance regarding the elements that need your attention during your junior year of high school.
To Do List for Juniors:
Train hard and continue to perform successfully as an athlete
Do well in school, and start noticing which academic areas interest you 
Make sure you are taking tough courses- colleges prefer students who challenge themselves
Try to find school clubs/organizations or local volunteer opportunities that interest you.
You should take the SAT’s in the spring- especially if you are applying early.
Start thinking about where you would like to go to school. Make a list of 5-15 colleges that interest you. Consult with your parents, friends, and counselors to get their input on schools.
Evaluate college athletic programs from different schools. Research team and conference results to see where you’d fit in. Don’t be afraid of contacting coaches to get information about their programs. Emailing a coach is a great way of both learning about and showing interest in a particular program.
Getting a(n) job/internship is an excellent way to build your resume. It’s also an excellent way to make money that can be put towards your college education.
If meeting the NCAA eligibility standards seems daunting, try taking summer classes to raise your grades and/or ease next year’s schedule.
Make unofficial visits to schools in which you are interested. Try to plan these trips after July 1st or June 15th, depending on the school’s division, so that you can meet with the coaching staff. Keep a journal with notes about what you like or dislike about each college. Inform your teachers that you will be missing work. Also, ask for a workout to do while visiting
Junior Year Testing:
- Take the PSAT in the fall to get some practice for the SAT and perhaps win a National Merit Scholarship.
- Analyze your PSAT results carefully. If you do poorly, perhaps taking an SAT class would be wise.
- If you did well, taking the SAT your junior year could be a great idea. Colleges look at your best combined SAT score (best verbal + best math), so taking the SAT multiple times can only help!
- Many schools require up to three SAT II scores. The spring of your junior year would be a wise time to take these. Since most schools require the SAT II Writing and Math, take each of these. You can take up to three SAT II tests at once and colleges only receive those scores that you submit.
- Register with the NCAA Initial Eligibility Clearinghouse and check the academic requirements. Make sure your senior year classes meet these requirements.
Junior Year NCAA Eligibility Center Suggestions:
- Register with the eligibility center. U.S. students should register here; International students should register here.
- Make sure you are still on course to meet core-course requirements (verify you have the correct number of core courses and that the core courses are on your high school’s 48-H with the NCAA Eligibility Center).
- After your junior year, have your high school guidance counselor send a copy of your transcript. If you have attended any other high schools, make sure a transcript is sent to the eligibility center from each high school.
- When taking the ACT or SAT, request test scores to be sent to the eligibility center (the code is “9999″). Begin your amateurism questionnaire.
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